I am trying the South Beach Diet!!
 

I am trying the South Beach Diet!!

Me, the person who said to never do these kinds of things, is trying the South Beach Diet!

And, it is working.

What I like is the program seems reasonable.

For example, they strongly suggest that if you exercise a lot (me) that you increase your carbohydrates, especially by eating something low glycemic such as oatmeal (home style, of course).

Also, they start you back on carbs after the second week - but only high quality carbs (whole grain, etc.)

So, how is it going?

Great for both my wife and myself.

My wife has pronounced hypoglycemia, and she was very worried. Her hypoglycemia attacks have stopped.

I am able to do the same amount of riding with no hunger pains nor energy loss.

Well, it has only been five days, but so far so good. Have already had some weight loss and feel great.

Will update you as I go along.

No attacks, please! :D

That great. A couple of years ago, I lost weight on Atkins and gained it back and this year, I lost 33 pounds since April 15 on what started out as a modified Atkins but turned into a sensible diet and lots of walking and cycling. Because of hurting knees, I started taking Glucosime and for some reason it also kills my hunger. Good Luck with your diet, I know several people who tried it and lost weight.

Whatever works for you! Good luck & keep us posted of your results.

Glassman, that's interesting. I take the Glucosamine/chondrotin/MSM combination and have been on a diet with stronger control than I've had in the past. I take 2 pills, twice a day, and am going to monitor whether my appitite is supressed afterwards. My knees had me pretty much out of action for quite a few months, during which I gained a lot of weight, but I wonder if it also has to do with exercise helping me control my eating. I'm a nervous eater, who eats a lot when I'm tense or bored. When I exercise, those factors are also reduced. So, perhaps better knees equals more exercise equals less appitite, but your hypothesis is interesting.

DnvrFox, congrats to you and your wife. I've lost twenty and am halfway to where I want to be. Not on any formal diet, per se, but just watching what I eat and exercising a lot, due to the fact that my knees haven't felt this good for years.

I also take 2 Glucosamine in the morning with my raisen bran and 2 in the evening, I love rasien bran, I also like Sara Lee Diet Wheat and diet peanut butter and turkey breast. I also try to eat at least one apple and sometime 2 apples a day. I don't eat 3 big meals but instead eat 6 or 7 smaller meals, I count apple as one meal... :)

I just started using this site and it has a food chart and how long it takes to burn off the calories
https://www.polarcyclingcoach.com/

I am one of those lucky people that do not seem to gain weight- It might shift a bit from the shoulders and chest to the waistline, but weight is not a problem. What I have found though is that if I am to keep riding as hard as I want, I have to keep up the carbs to find the energy. A diet of salads and protein does not work for me, wheras Plenty of Pies, cakes, Oatmeal, flapkacks etc does keep me up with the youngsters on the rides.
Now if some one can find how I can get a bottle of cognac into a diet, then that will interest me

Man, you are SO lucky. And, from your ride descriptions, it sounds as if you burn about 8,000 Kcal during each ride!

I think you are in your low 50's? I used to be able to do what you are doing now also. Sadly, at 65, no more.

The rest of we mere mortals have to use other techniques.

Glassman, I'm doing pretty much the same thing as far as diet. I spread out to more meals, with less at each meal. Before, I'd just wolf down big meals.

Stapfam, you got me envious. When I was a lot younger, I could get by with my lousy binge eating. No more. The only thing is that I do fill my water bottles with Cognac. I think it's pretty much all carbs. Am I being bad??? I know I'm smiling a lot during my rides, but my handling is a bit awry.

I, too, recently started the South Beach Diet. It's been about 3 weeks and have lost 12 pounds! And, that included a gain of a couple pounds during vacation. I'm riding 20 miles 3 or 4 times a week. But, I still have a long way to go... I need to lose another 30-40 pounds. Oh, I guess I could mention that I'm 61 and gain weight sooo easily.

Fortunately, I only need to lose about another 17 pounds. Hope they come off easily. I am riding about 120 miles per week.

Last ride I checked, On my new polar Monitor-- I only burnt 6000 cals, but that was a longish ride of 60 miles that I do not rush at. Age 58 and having to work harder to stay with the 40 year olds in my group- the 30 year olds are easy as I just throw in an extra hill when they have started to have enough. Experience counts.

I am lucky in the weight department, in fact I have to keep an eye on losing too much weight. I normally weigh about 147 to 149 lbs. If I do a series of long hard rides, or extra long sessions at the gym, I can get down to 140 but at that weight I have lost a bit too much "Fat" and that does not help with the Energy levels on the long rides.

There is a reason for being a bit heavy so any of you that class yourselves as "Lardies" look on it as part of your training programme for that long ride you are planning later in the year.

Keith
I hadn't thought of the water bottle, but in the winter we do take a spirits flask with us, Only enough for a sip each, but the next 5 miles are covered pretty quick.

Okay - now on the diet for 8 days.

1.Have lost several pounds - looking much slimmer - didn't take weight at first, but can tell by waist line.

2. Have absolutely no shortage of energy on my 20 mile morning rides - in fact, just the opposite - am full of energy. Have not had to increase carbs at all, except for one morning where I ate oatmeal instead of the protein, but really didn't have to do that.

3. Wife had lost several pounds, and no problems with her hypoglycemic attacks - in fact, she has has none. She can tell because today she could wear pants that did not fit last week!

But, am getting just a bit sick of vegetables.

So, continue on my merry way, hoping all good things continue!

You Guys Are Full Of Inspiration. I Need To Lose 10 Lbs. For The Last 2 Years And It's Hard. I Never Had A Weight Problem Before This But These Days It's Hard To Say No To Desert. I Stayed On The South Beach Diet For 3 Days. Then It All Went Up In Smoke But With Your Words Of Wisdom I'll Try Again. We Started Riding Our Bikes 15 Miles Every Other Day. Then The Day Inbetween We Walk . After A Couple Of Wks It's Getting Easier. It's Bloody Hot Here In Florida But I Reckon The Heat Is On Every Where. Stay Cool And Positive.and Ride On.
Thanks

Starting 11th day tomorrow.

Feel absolutely GREAT. Have lost a couple of pounds in just the last 3 days.

Riding 140 miles per week, easily and with no extra carb requirements.

Wife doing great and has lost over 5 lbs. She also feels great, and is walking and bicycling. On her 30 mile ride yesterday, she had NO PROBLEM with her hypoglycemia, which is almost unheard of for her. Did not have to eat a lot of special snacks, like usual.

Only 14,5 lbs to go to meet my target.

Good stuff! Glad itz workin for youz.

"She, who must be obeyed" has also been on the So Bch for about 3 wks and seems to be progressing positively. She doesn't ride as much, since the weight issues makes distances over 12 miles uncomfortable in the saddle. And she hasn't quite gotten to the point where her ass has been broken in by the saddle.
:eek:
But things are progressing.
Personally, I'm not a 'planned diet' guy; so seeing one that actually works surprises the heck outta me.
And it seems quite sensible in the foods preferred by the diet plan.

Veggies ROCK! You'll get used to them. Now I'm not a vegetarian. I do enjoy the occasional charred Bovine flesh (and poultry, peccary and poisson) but veggies are the cornerstone of my eats. Can't imagine a meal without a varied mix of vegetative matter.

Just wanted to relay another ongoing success story - this one seems sensible and actually works and is making life a lot more fun back here in our Yurt!

I've been on the South Beach Diet (a bit modified) for 2 months and I'm down 20 pounds. That's with a week's vacation over the Fourth when I actually gained. Self-control went out the window then. But, that won't happen again.

Well, I'm starting the South Beach Tomorrow. I'm a little concerned about energy during Phase One as I ride 100 to 120 miles a week on and off road. I will make sure and get plenty of the approved carbs during phase one and try to learn my threshold.

After my husband got the alarming results of some bloodwork about three months ago, we went on the South Beach diet. I needed something to follow, and it seemed a sensible diet, as far as diets go. It's actually a change in eating habits rather than a "diet". Lots of vegetables, meat OK, coffee OK, red wine OK, slowly add in good carbs. After two months, my husband was no longer pre-diabetic and his cholesterol, while still high, is down from 300+ to 230. We just started cycling a month ago and have plenty of energy. We are biking about 30-50 miles per week. And he looks hot in his new jersey and cycling shorts. Very little of that tummy left; it was the first to go.

Good luck!

Trudie

So How's it going now - are you still with it? I find that the first 5 lbs is easy - the rest takes time and will power, or is that won't power.

The key with this or any other diet is to continue the healthier eating patterns for the rest of your life, which is true for any lifestyle change. I know a few people who lost weight on the SB diet only to gain it back. That's not the fault of the diet itself though. I think the problem is the over-focus on doing it just to lose weight rather than make healthy lifestyle changes.

Chris Carmichael in his book Food for Fitness says that a low-carb diet is fine for non-active people or those whose form of exercise is easy walking, but for those (like us) who are very active and especially those involved in activity of higher intensity such as cycling for longer durations, the carbs become a very important factor in our fitness and nutrition. Even high-glycemic carbs are fine (actually, they are recommended) if eaten during a ride and immediately after. That doesn't mean eat Jello or jelly beans though.... there are better choices. :)

Last couple of years and I have been on the SEE food Diet. Can't get down to 140 any longer but Do I need to. Still at 148 so I am happy. Just wish it wasn't moving about so much.

My Doc talked me into trying SB for 8 weeks to see if it would raise my HDL.
This was a wonderful example of "the operation was a success but the
patient died." I couldn't go the the gym without a hypoglycemic event and
was scared to ride. SB doesn't account for patient size or activity level.

If it works for you then that is terrific. I wanted to put out a warning that
others may have different results. Back when I tried SB my rides were about
1,000 Kcal/hr (wish I was there now!) or 3,500 to 4,000 per ride. I'd guess
that SB would only provide half that for a day. That is why I believe that
Yen's quote is right on the money.

Stepfam-
I think it's doubtful you burned 6000 calories on a 60 mile ride. I use a Garmin 305, and on the MotionBased forum there is a lot of discussion about the accuracy of that device's calorie counter. In one of the BF forums, the guy who writes Cyclistats said that a cyclist burns about 40 calories per hour, a little more if you're bigger, going faster than average, or doing more hills, a little less if oyu're smaller, average speed and no hills. I figure I average around 45 calories per hour becuase I'm bigger than average (6'0", 184 ppounds) and I go a bit faster (around 18 mph typically). I understand Tour de France riders burn about 8000 calories a day during the race going faster and farther than I can ever imagine.

For those of us who exercise to lose weight, it's important not to put much faith in calorie computers, because it could lead you to overeat.

I don't know where you get 45 kcal/hr for bike riding. That is less than most peoples at rest calorie expenditure. I use a value of 850kcal/hour for my weight and riding speed (17 mph/avg). For a 60 mile ride that would be close to 3200 for a 60 mile ride. Try this link - it agrees with what I have read else where as well as what my Forerunner says: http://www.healthstatus.com/cbc.html
Having a good estimate of how much you are burning through exercise is important because your intake should not drop more than about 500 kcal below your daily burn otherwise you will be loosing muscle and slowing your metabolism. This equates to about 1lb weight loss/week.

Weight watchers points plan for me. I'm down 34 lbs and still dropping my goal was 165 well I'm there and now I think another 10 lb loss is not going to be too hard. I'd eventually like to be 150 I should be able to make that by Christmas, if not I'll just keep trying till I make it. the whole process is a change of eating habits mostly smaller portions and no fast food or boxed food. Turkey fish and chicken but I eat a small steak once in a while but no spuds we ususally have a salad or steamed veggies. I drink water with most meals but the one think I would not give up was sugar in my coffee so I made the choice to not eat cheese which I was eating a lot of so its all worked out. My wife likes the new slimmer me but then she liked me when I was a chubby boy too.